16028: The Metrics & Data To Execute Bloodbaths Quickly.

Thanks to Oracle NetSuite, CFOs can confidently and quickly decide to cut staff—at advertising agencies, Meta, Twitter and more. Hell, the creative team responsible for this social advertisement probably got canned too.

15854: Facebook Safety, Reckless Spending.

 

This Facebook commercial sucks in a multitude of ways. Why is the social media platform bragging about all the money and resources used for safety precautions—aren’t such measures part of Facebook’s operational needs and overall responsibility? And did they have to create a big-budget commercial to deliver the message? Surely the exorbitant funds could have been directed toward more substantive care for communities.

 

Even the actress choice feels like a self-serving attempt to make Facebook look diverse.

 

And why didn’t Facebook mention the $650 million class action lawsuit settlement?

 

15499: Cornell Diversity And Inclusion Certificate Certifiably Worthless.

 

If this Facebook ad was produced by a diverse creative team, it strongly counters the argument that diversity leads to better ideas.

15471: The Face Of Facebook Is Still Exclusive.

 

Looks like Facebook is struggling to diversify its advertising too…

15445: Almost Red-Faced Over Facebook Face-Off…

 

Facebook extended the ban against former President Donald Trump for two more years. Expect Trump to respond by launching his own social media platform—OrangeFacebook.

15070: Is Wieden + Kennedy Two-Faced With Facebook…?

AgencySpy posted on the patronizing paradox of Wieden+Kennedy taking a bold stand on Black Lives Matter (depicted above) until its client, Facebook, landed on the wrong side of the matter. Then again, it’s not the first time the White advertising agency has done the cultural cluelessness cha-cha-cha. After all, co-founder Dan Wieden declared the industry was fucked up in terms of diversity in 2009—and he even collected an ADCOLOR® trophy. Yet nearly a decade later, current W+K Co-President Colleen DeCourcy felt compelled to challenge everyone in the shop to do the right thing better. Plus, there was the art director who claimed to be among only two Black women in the creative ranks at the 600-person company. Hell, it’s not even the first time W+K has been criticized for hypocrisy involving Black Lives Matter. It appears to be another classic case of talking the talk—and marching the march—without walking the walk. The official W+K statement expressed that publicly speaking about Facebook would be “unhelpful” and “unprofessional.” Okay, but doesn’t integrity integrate into the equality equation?

 

W+K Says It Would Be ‘Unprofessional’ to Weigh In on Industry Backlash Against Client Facebook

 

By David Griner

 

On June 17, Wieden + Kennedy released a statement not only in support of Black Lives Matter but also putting clients or potential clients on notice.

 

“If you do not support this sentiment as a client, we’ll gladly support you finding another agency,” W+K wrote in an animated post on Instagram.

 

The statement was bold, but the timing proved somewhat awkward. On the same day, six advocacy groups (including the NAACP and Anti-Defamation League) launched the #StopHateforProfit campaign urging advertisers to boycott Facebook—a major W+K client—in July.

 

That effort, aimed at getting Facebook to curb the spread of hate speech and misinformation on its platforms, has since snowballed into one of the industry’s largest boycotts ever.

 

Some of the world’s largest advertisers, including W+K clients Ford and Coca-Cola, have joined the effort, which comes after weeks of scrutiny over Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg‘s reluctance to fact-check political advertising or flag incendiary posts by President Donald Trump.

 

(For a relatively quick and easy refresher on how this boycott came together, you can check out Adweek’s newest bonus podcast episode with reporter Scott Nover, who’s been covering the story’s rapid development.)

 

Like most agencies, W+K has remained quiet on the boycott despite the movement’s clear traction with brands and equality advocates who normally find themselves marching alongside the outspoken agency.

 

But W+K isn’t like most agencies. It’s proudly independent (unlike the rest of the Facebook agency roster, including Accenture Interactive’s Droga5, Omnicom’s BBDO, Publicis’ Leo Burnett and WPP’s Ogilvy) and famously vocal on social issues—especially around race in America.

 

So, after saying it would drop clients who don’t support the “sentiment” of Black Lives Matter, will W+K stand by Facebook amid criticism of the network from much of the brand community and groups such as the NAACP?

 

Today, the agency sent Adweek an official statement, or rather an official statement declining to make a statement:

 

“There is no debate on the fact that Black Lives Matter to us. We felt it was important as an agency to make that statement public,” W+K agency leadership wrote. “That said, speaking publicly about the challenges our client faces right now is not only unhelpful; it’s unprofessional. Suffice it to say, the intense conversations taking place at Menlo Park are taking place at Wieden + Kennedy.”

 

So there you go. Doesn’t sound like we can expect a high-profile client breakup any time soon, despite the agency’s tough talk on Instagram.

14933: BHM 2020—Facebook.

For Black History Month, this Facebook video presents nearly every patronizing cliché possible. So, how is the social media player making progress on protecting the civil rights of minorities?

14752: Marc Pritchard & Antonio Lucio Setting New Standards For Status Quo.

Adweek presented a podcast featuring Procter & Gamble Chief Brand Officer Marc Pritchard and Facebook CMO Antonio Lucio, which could have been titled, “Divertsity and Divertisement Dumb and Dumber Duo.” Adweek declared the dimwits are “setting new industry standards.” Yes, new standards for hypocrisy and bullshit. The trade journal should have added Verizon CMO Diego Scotti to complete The Three Stooges of the status quo. Don’t bother listening to the gibberish and jabber. Appropriately, these guys are all talk.

P&G CBO Marc Pritchard and Facebook CMO Antonio Lucio Setting New Industry Standards

By Nadine Dietz

What happens when you bring two of the most influential marketing leaders in the world together on one podcast? I just had to find out, which is why I invited Marc Pritchard, CBO of Procter & Gamble and Antonio Lucio, CMO of Facebook to come together to interview each other in this very special CMO Moves Duos episode.

I had a front-row seat as Marc and Antonio dove deep into the topics driving the industry today, starting with an intriguing update on the challenges they face today in their respective organizations. One would think that a 182-year-old company and a 15-year-old company would be worlds apart. Also, the role of Chief Brand Officer and the Chief Marketing Officer would have fundamentally different objectives. And being “B2C” vs “B2B(&C)” would certainly be a dividing factor. Alas, the camaraderie, mutual respect, and alignment on what is most important for brands and marketing today was incredible and how both are championing their customers and consumers in new ways, as well as working well together for industry advancement.

We’ve all heard from or read about Marc and Antonio individually on the importance of transparency, trust, diversity, inclusion, credibility, reinvention and responsibility. Hearing them discuss the topics together and the rationale behind their shared perspectives only further underscores their impact in our marketing community and provides all of us a blueprint for becoming the best leaders we can be.

14619: Does Antonio Lucio Want To Give Facebook A Marketing And Multicultural Makeover?

Advertising Age reported on the latest escapades of former HP CMO and current Facebook CMO Antonio Lucio, who just launched a new advertising campaign to reinvent the social network as a friendly and diverse place. “What you’re going to see from us from now on is much more of a regular beat on all the progress that we are making,” declared Lucio. “We need to make sure that we are participants in the way that our story is told and not just on the receiving end.” That sounds like marketing mumbo jumbo from a world-class con artist. Hey, Facebook recently took heat from the NAACP for civil rights abuses—so the solution is to hand the propaganda reins to a guy whose patronizing stunt admittedly failed to bring racial progress to the advertising industry…? And is it a clever coincidence that the Ad Age article was illustrated with a photo of a Black family (depicted above)? Ad Age wrote, “The fight against abusive accounts is one of the main pillars of Lucio’s messaging strategy. Facebook needs to ‘eliminate white supremacists and nationalist groups’ content from the platform,’ [Lucio] says.” That’s a tall order, given that Lucio couldn’t even curb cultural cluelessness in a handful of White advertising agencies.

Facebook CMO Antonio Lucio plans to rebuild trust, starting with an ad campaign

New marketing chief looks to restore a sense of positivity

By Garett Sloane

Facebook’s new CMO Antonio Lucio is on the offensive against the offensive. The social network is about to embark on a feel-good marketing campaign to restore a sense of positivity around the company’s future, but first it has to extinguish the hate.

Lucio joined Facebook in September during a time of upheaval at the social media giant: The company was embroiled in the Cambridge Analytica scandal, there were investigations from Washington to Brussels into privacy lapses, and there was an aura of toxicity around the platform amplifying the most offensive voices. Those issues are all still ongoing, but in a rare interview since joining the company, Lucio says the plan to rebuild “trust and value” in Facebook starts with reclaiming the platform and message.

“What you’re going to see from us from now on is much more of a regular beat on all the progress that we are making,” Lucio says. “We need to make sure that we are participants in the way that our story is told and not just on the receiving end.”

On Friday, the first advertising component was unveiled with TV commercials, online videos and billboards, all with a focus on Groups, the niche communities that are now central to the platform. The slogan of the campaign is “More Together,” and it highlights the community-building aspects of Groups, which bring together like-minded people around shared interests like fatherhood, cars and barbecue.

Before debuting the fluffy campaign, though, Facebook first had some dirty-work to handle.

On Thursday, the company banned notorious instigators Paul Joseph Watson, Laura Loomer and Milo Yiannopoulos, who represent some of the vitriolic accounts that have turned Facebook, and much of social media, into a combat zone. The timing of the bans, coinciding with the saccharine ad campaign, shows that Facebook is trying to retake control of how it’s talked about publicly.

“People are a bit tired of the fast-paced, loud, hyper-polarized environment in which we’re living around the world,” Lucio says, speaking just days in advance of the purge. “They want to find a common ground, things that they share with people.”

The fight against abusive accounts is one of the main pillars of Lucio’s messaging strategy. Facebook needs to “eliminate white supremacists and nationalist groups’ content from the platform,” he says.

Earlier in the week, Facebook had another message at its F8 developer conference, which brings together its most ardent supporters for a showcase of new products and updates. It was at F8 that CEO Mark Zuckerberg unveiled a redesign to the main Facebook app and discussed the company’s new mission—a refreshed look to go with the refreshed strategy.

Zuckerberg talked about the new focus for his company: building encrypted messaging so communication remains private. He talked about impermanence, creating products like video Stories, which disappear so they don’t haunt users later in life. He also talked about “interoperability,” unifying the apps in the ecosystem—Facebook, Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp—so that people can communicate across all of them.

As for the redesigned main app, it lost its signature blue banner, it is more airy with whitespace and modern. There is also a new emphasis on Groups, which will be clear from the marketing campaign that starts rolling out on Monday.

“What happens with Groups is that you are in a small audience that is more relevant to something that you want to talk about,” says Fidji Simo, head of the Facebook app. “We see a lot of people talking about things in Groups that they wouldn’t talk to their friends about in private.”

The ad campaign to promote Groups will serve as a public relations tool, too, showing off the more positive side of Facebook. Wieden & Kennedy, Freuds and Facebook’s internal team, Creative X, developed the marketing plan and creative strategy, which features “real people, real stories,” from among the 400 million people who use Groups, Lucio says.

“When they talk about their experience within the platform it is the experience that we all should have,” Lucio says. “This is the place where Facebook is at its best, where information is shared, joy is spread, problems big and small are solved, and even small businesses are born.”

14582: Does Facebook’s New Ban Go Far Enough?

Facebook announced it will ban White nationalists and White separatists from posting on the site. Meanwhile, White advertising agencies continue to be welcome. Go figure.

14430: Facing Mat Baxter’s Two-Faced Facebook Face Slapping.

Advertising Age reported on Initiative Global CEO Mat Baxter boldly imploring all clients to stop doing business with Facebook. Baxter barked:

“It’s about time we take a collective stand against the egregious behavior of Facebook. Every time these sorts of stories [about privacy issues] surface they assure us that they are ‘trying harder’… enough is enough. I will be advising clients to stay off the platform entirely—hopefully, when they feel the pain of lost advertising dollars things might just change.”

Whoa, Mad Mat, settle down. Sorry, but the doofus’ daring damnation is deflective dookie.

For starters, a media wonk condemning bad behavior from others is pot-calling-the-kickback-black bullshit of the highest order.

It’s even zanier for the leader of Initiative to take such a holier-than-thou stance when the shop opened the year facing a lawsuit from an ex-associate claiming she was sexually assaulted by a Dr Pepper client—and the victim accused the White media agency of responding by trying to move her to a different account.

It’s also a little crazy that Initiative—which is part of IPG—would attack Facebook, considering the White holding company has been in bed with the social media service since at least 2006. There’s no doubt IPG has financially benefited from an exclusive relationship with Facebook, selling clients on the popular website. In 2011, IPG collected over $130 million in cash by selling part of its Facebook shares, a deal that received harsh criticism from the trade press. In 2012, an ex-executive filed a $381 million lawsuit demanding compensation for allegedly setting up the IPG-Facebook partnership. No offense, but Initiative now comes off like an angry pimp slapping a profitable hooker.

Most outrageous is Baxter’s tone and tiff, especially when held against the IPG character relating to diversity and divertsity. Here is a corporate entity always boasting leadership in inclusion, yet its walk never matches its talk. The faux advocacy for racial, ethnic, gender, generational, sexual orientation, disabled, neurological, house pets, etc. equality is contrasted by consistently crappy, conniving, cunning, criminal cultural cluelessness. And when the hypocritical lack of progress is called out, the responses are, “We’re on it” and “We’ve got to do better.” Enough is enough, indeed.

Before berating Facebook, Baxter better look in the mirror at his own face.

Ad industry puts Facebook on defensive with rebuke from top media executive

Are advertisers ‘on the cusp of a mighty rebellion’ against the social service?

By Megan Graham

The CEO of a major media agency has harsh words for Facebook and is urging clients to steer clear—feeding a debate about whether the recent barrage of privacy issues in digital advertising will lead to clients pulling ad dollars.

“It’s about time we take a collective stand against the egregious behavior of Facebook,” Mat Baxter, global CEO of Interpublic Group of Cos.-owned media agency Initiative, posted on LinkedIn Wednesday. His post linked to a Business Insider story that said Facebook allowed Netflix and Spotify to access users’ private messages. “Every time these sorts of stories surface they assure us that they are ‘trying harder’… enough is enough. I will be advising clients to stay off the platform entirely—hopefully, when they feel the pain of lost advertising dollars things might just change.”

Though issues have plagued Facebook as of late, advertisers have more or less turned a blind eye and continued spending on the platform.

Facebook’s VP of global marketing solutions Carolyn Everson said in an emailed statement the tech company has been accused of not respecting people’s privacy settings and disclosing private messages to partners without their knowledge. “To reiterate, that is not true,” she said. On Tuesday, the tech company published a blog post titled “Let’s Clear Up a Few Things About Facebook’s Partners.”

“People have questions about how Facebook uses information and what controls we give them,” Everson said. “We clearly need to do more to educate them about their privacy options. This is a big focus for us heading into 2019.”

“Every day we work hand-in-hand with our advertising partners to help them grow their businesses and better serve their customers,” she continued. “We have a strong partnership with IPG agencies around the world and look forward to that continuing for years to come.”

Interpublic’s CEO Michael Roth said in an emailed statement that the holding company takes consumer privacy and protection “very seriously.”

“As an independent advisor to clients, we navigate a complex media environment and must balance audience engagement with brand safety,” he said. “We look to all media platforms to be transparent about their usage of consumer data and will continue to work closely with our media partners, including Facebook, to ensure we have the highest data and privacy standards for our clients.”

In a research note, Pivotal Research senior analyst Brian Wieser said Baxter’s comments were noteworthy, saying that though they didn’t believe the comments would “tangibly impact revenues immediately,” they “indicate that there are heightened risks to advertising revenue at Facebook at this time.”

“These comments echo perspectives we have heard from many of Baxter’s peers in private,” Wieser wrote. “Although a global CEO of a media agency does not dictate client spending decisions … they can influence clients to think differently about their bigger-picture spending choices. To the extent that digital advertising might represent half of many large clients’ budgets and for many Facebook could be half of that figure, public views such as these will at minimum contribute to ongoing scrutiny on Facebook and the search for alternative ways to deploy budgets.”

An executive at Lego Group, which brought on Initiative late last year as its global media agency, commented on Baxter’s advice on LinkedIn by touting the ethics of such a strategy. “Good on you for calling this out Mat,” wrote Ben Campbell, senior global strategist at the Danish toymaker, on LinkedIn. “It starts here—if the rest of the media network makes an ethical stance on this, we are on the cusp of a mighty rebellion. A rebellion based on values and moral compass, not just the pursuit of short-term metrics.” A spokeswoman from Lego did not return a request for further comment.

Clorox, which is not an Initiative client, isn’t looking to pull out of Facebook—yet—says Stacey Grier, vice president of brand engagement, who will become chief marketing officer at of Jan. 7.

“Our perspective is that we can do more good by working through Facebook and helping them and pushing them to address the problems rather than pulling out,” Grier says. “Obviously, that is an option in the long term. But we feel like they are going through some growing pains, and that is not surprising given the trajectory of their growth.”

“I think Mat is right; we should not spend anything with them,” says one media executive who has previously spent money with Facebook. This person suggests that brands who espouse so-called purpose-driven marketing are disingenuous if they continue to support Facebook. “Everyone in the industry has to take a look in the mirror and ask ‘What is the right thing to do?’” says this person, speaking on condition of anonymity. “But all anyone cares about is the dollar.”

Equinox, which advertises on Facebook, said it is being very careful about its dollars when it comes to the social-media platform. “We obviously have the same pause as everyone else does,” says Vimla Black Gupta, chief marketing officer at the New York-based fitness brand. “Everyone is a victim of this; we scrutinize every channel.”

Contributing: Adrianne Pasquarelli, Garett Sloane, Jack Neff, E.J. Schultz

14412: Delivering Diversity From Facebook To 4As.

Adweek reported the 4As hired Simon Fenwick to serve as EVP Talent Engagement and Inclusion. In his previous role, Fenwick oversaw recruitment and diversity initiatives at Facebook—that bastion of inclusion. Prior to Facebook, Fenwick held talent and diversity positions with IPG Mediabrands and Starcom, more dubious diversity devotees. Oh, and he’s only been in the U.S. for about 14 years. Given the industry’s current climate, it’s amazing the 4As didn’t hire a White woman or woman of color for the job. Or maybe not.

Facebook Diversity Leader and Recruiting Manager Heads to 4A’s

Organization names Simon Fenwick evp, talent engagement and inclusion

By Lindsay Rittenhouse

The 4A’s has snagged Facebook executive Simon Fenwick as its executive vice president of talent engagement and inclusion. Fenwick will oversee the organization’s diversity, learning and development programs starting Jan. 2.

Fenwick’s role will span the 4A’s foundation, which includes the Multicultural Advertising Intern Program (MAIP) and the 4A’s High School Programs, the Workplace Enlightenment Certification (WEC) and the Learning Academy.

Since March, Fenwick has been overseeing creative and brand recruiting and diversity initiatives at Facebook. Before that, he spent two years as executive vice president of global talent and diversity at IPG Mediabrands and from 2012 to 2015 served as senior vice president, group director of global talent at Starcom.

“Today, more than any time in history, people and their experiences across a connected world have become the true currency of a successful business,” Fenwick said in a statement. “As such, I believe in bringing people together to facilitate change and drive success.”

He added, “With the 4A’s being a true champion of diversity and inclusion, they’re the perfect home to help elevate people’s unique experiences to better the industry as a whole.”

According to the 4A’s, Fenwick volunteers with several organizations supporting the LGBTQ community and those that provide early career opportunities for diverse youth. Born in Kenya and raised in New Zealand and Australia, Fenwick has lived in the U.S. for the past 14 years.

He will relocate to New York from San Francisco for the new role, under which he will report to 4A’s CEO Marla Kaplowitz.

“As we continue to advocate for a more inclusive industry, Simon brings the passion, drive and experience to make that a reality,” Kaplowitz said in a statement. “From our MAIP program, which provides a platform to launch and sustain careers, to WEC, which creates safe and productive work environments, Simon will offer invaluable expertise to make the industry a better place to work.”

14309: Champion Of Certain People.

Adweek reported Antonio Lucio left his Global CMO role at HP to take a similar position with Facebook. The article subhead proclaimed, “Executive championed diversity in advertising.” This statement demonstrates that it doesn’t take much to be crowned a diversity champion in adland. Indeed, Lucio was actually a divertsity champion, literally prioritizing the promotion of White women over others, and accepting the clichéd excuses for denying people of color into the field. So it’s fitting that he landed at Facebook, where White faces and White women are doing fine. In the advertising industry, true diversity champions get blacklisted, blackballed, black-eyed and blacked out. Divertsity champions, on the other hand, receive praise, respect, accolades, ADCOLOR® Awards, etc.—as well as elevated employment opportunities.

Facebook Hires HP’s Antonio Lucio As Its New Global Chief Marketing Officer

Executive championed diversity in advertising

By Patrick Coffee

Antonio Lucio, global chief marketing and communications officer at tech giant HP Inc., is leaving for the same role at Facebook, the company confirmed today. Lucio will report to Facebook chief product officer Chris Cox and start on September 4.

“[Antonio] has an extraordinary reputation in the industry as a leader, a marketer, an operator, and a wise, gracious, and deeply principled human being,” said Cox in a statement. “He has been outspoken on the need to build authentic global brands with integrity and from places of principle, and also on the importance of building diverse teams at every level in the organization. From all our interactions with him, he is a force of nature, and we are lucky to have him.”

Cox continued: “Facebook’s story is at an inflection point. We have never faced bigger challenges, and we have never had more opportunities to have a positive impact on the world—in our families, our friendships, our communities, and our democracy—by improving our products at their core, and then by telling the story outside that we all know to be true inside.”

“Purpose and impact have been at the center of every career decision that I have ever made,” said Lucio, adding that he will work to “support [Facebook’s] evolution. “Facebook is one of the world’s most impactful brands, at a pivotal moment in its history.”

Lucio spent more than three years with Palo Alto-based HP following its split from the The Hewlett Packard Corporation. During his tenure, he was perhaps best known as an outspoken advocate for diversity.

In 2016, for example, he gave each of HP’s agency partners 30 days to submit a plan explaining how they would increase the number of women and people of color within their creative departments. One year later, he shared each shop’s “scorecard” publicly, stating that they each had “more work to do with underrepresented groups.” At this year’s Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity, he introduced the #MoreLikeMe initiative to diversify attendance, released a study showing that diverse ads are more effective and led a panel on the topic.

Prior to joining HP in 2015, Lucio held the global CMO position at Visa as well as top executive roles at PepsiCo and Kraft.

Vikrant Batra, who had been global head of marketing for HP’s printing division, will succeed Lucio. Additionally, the company promoted chief communications officer and head of communications, corporate brand and events Karen Kahn to its executive leadership team. Both will now report directly to president and CEO Dion Weisler.

“The appointments are symbolic of the deep bench of talent within our Marketing and Communications organizations,” read a statement from Weisler. “Our corporate reinvention over the last several years has been fueled by the remarkable power of our brand—in our marketing leadership and emotional connection to our customers, and in our corporate narrative and purpose-driven positioning.”

Weisler proceeded to thank Lucio for his service, adding, “With a brand that has never been stronger, it’s a testament to his leadership that we are prepared with the right team to continue to reinvent HP and drive shareholder value.”

In January, Facebook CMO Gary Briggs announced that he would be retiring after four and a half years with the company. Briggs, who was formerly vp of consumer marketing at Google, said he would be consulting other companies, working on political campaigns and helping Facebook “hire someone great” to replace him in the meantime.

13627: Pure Stupidity From NIVEA.

Campaign reported NIVEA is red-faced over a Facebook post that prompted charges of racism by trumpeting: White Is Purity. The skin care company released the following statement:

“We are deeply sorry to anyone who may take offense to this specific post. After realising that the post is misleading, it was immediately withdrawn.

Diversity and equal opportunity are crucial values of Nivea. The brand represents diversity, tolerance, and equal opportunity.

We value difference. Direct or indirect discrimination must be ruled out in all decisions by, and in all areas of our activities.”

Okey-doke. But this isn’t the first time NIVEA has caught heat for its cultural cluelessness. Just ask Rihanna or any civilized Black man.

Nivea sorry for ‘white is purity’ Facebook ad

By Omar Oakes

Skincare brand Nivea has apologised for running a Facebook ad that ran the tagline “white is purity” and prompted accusations of racism.

The ad, for the Nivea invisible deodorant range, has since been deleted from Facebook.

Nivea, which has 19 million fans on its global Facebook page, was directed to Middle East social media users.

An image of a woman wearing a white bathrobe was accompanied by the tagline “white is purity”. Alongside the image, Nivea posted the message, “Keep it clean, keep bright. Don’t let anything ruin it, #invisible.

In a statement, Nivea’s owners Beiersdorf said it accepted the post was misleading and was immediately withdrawn in response to “concerns” about ethnic discrimination.

It went on to say, “We are deeply sorry to anyone who may take offense to this specific post. After realising that the post is misleading, it was immediately withdrawn.

“Diversity and equal opportunity are crucial values of Nivea. The brand represents diversity, tolerance, and equal opportunity.

“We value difference. Direct or indirect discrimination must be ruled out in all decisions by, and in all areas of our activities.”

13404: Dot Does Diverted Diversity.

Adweek reported on the latest diverted diversity darling—Dot—created by Randi Zuckerberg. The cartoon character inadvertently yet ultimately combines diverted diversity with nepotism.

Randi Zuckerberg Hopes to Battle Inequality in Silicon Valley With Her New Kids Show

Dot will air on NBCU’s Sprout network

By Sami Main

“I’ve spent a decade in Silicon Valley,” said Randi Zuckerberg. “Innovation is everywhere. It’s supposed to be the center of forward thinking. [So] why can I count the number of women executives on one hand? Or people of color?”

At Thursday’s premiere event for Zuckerberg’s new television show Dot, based on her children’s book of the same name, she discussed everything from inequality in the industry to the right way for kids to use new technology.

Press were invited to bring their children to the event. As a result, there were milkshakes dripping and mini burgers in hand as Zuckerberg streamed an episode of the show. Attendees could also don wigs for a GIF photobooth, or pose for a snap on the pink carpet. Coloring books, and tablets loaded with coloring book technology, were also provided for the kids to play with.

Dot, in the book and now as a TV character, is a tech-savvy young girl. She taps and types, shares and swipes, and carries her tablet everywhere. She’s the perfect way to help parents teach their kids about the technology surrounding them today.

“Dot and her group of friends don’t look like your typical cast of characters,” Zuckerberg said. “I wanted them to reflect all levels of diversity.”

“I loved working in Silicon Valley, but at the same time I hated the fact that there were no women in the room,” she said. “We need to start challenging people on the notion of what an entrepreneur in America looks like, and it needs to happen early on.”

Kids today are starting to use technology earlier and earlier in life. And that, Zuckerberg thinks, can create some fear or anxiety for parents.

“No matter what their level of expertise in their job, every parent is an amateur at parenting when they first start,” said Zuckerberg. “Especially with this very digital group.”

Dot will air at 11 a.m. ET Saturdays on Sprout, a network just for children which launched in 2005 and is now owned by NBCUniversal. Zuckerberg considers it another type of startup.

“It felt like we came together at a really critical moment for both of us,” she said. “I needed Sprout as much as they needed me. I knew they’d give this program the love it deserved.”

Zuckerberg wants her sons, Asher and Simi, who are both under six years old, to grow up in a “different world” than what she experienced in Silicon Valley.

“Dot is about finding a balance in a high-tech world through the waters of modern childhood,” said Zuckerberg.

“Dot is inquisitive,” said Amy Friedman, Sprout’s head of development. “We want to give kids the tools and role models that will help them show up in the world.”

Sprout’s motto, after all, is ‘Free to grow.’

“When parents see the Dot logo or book or show, I want them to know that it’s safe and appropriate,” said Zuckerberg. “I’d love to see a Dot iPad, designed specifically for kids, one day. I want parents to know how technology can add to your household. It doesn’t have to detract.”

12878: Ignorant Fool On Facebook.

A MultiCultClassics visitor pointed to a disturbing story—which has actually gone viral and global—spotlighting the firing of Polaris Marketing Group Ex-Employee Gerod Roth, who displayed racist commentary on Facebook involving the 3-year-old son of a Black co-worker. Roth actually had the ignorant audacity to attempt to defend himself on the local news in Atlanta. The most outrageous part is, Roth will have an easier time landing another job in the advertising field than most minorities—even in Atlanta, where there is a 54% Black population.

12848: BlackFacebook From KFC.

A MultiCultClassics visitor pointed to a Facebook post from KFC Peru. Finger-licking bullshit.

12797: Tech Industry Diversifies Lies.

Adweek published a fluff piece titled, As the Tech Industry Grows and Diversifies, Digital Agency Dress Codes Now Range ‘From Hobo to GQ’. Um, when did the tech industry diversify? It will probably happen around the same time the advertising industry diversifies—and the technology to predict that date has not yet been invented.

12740: Black Face For Facebook.

It looks like Facebook improved its 2 percent Black employees figure by hiring Ogilvy & Mather South Africa CEO Nunu Ntshingila to run a sales office opening in Johannesburg. If Ntshingila leaves O&M to assume the Facebook role, the global diversity factor is almost a wash, as the predominately White advertising industry loses a Black person while the predominately White technology industry gains a Black person. And since Ntshingila is a female, the global gender factor shuffles too.

Ogilvy Alum Will Oversee Facebook’s Expansion in Africa

For the World’s Largest Social Network, Africa Holds Vast Potential

North America has a population of about 500 million, and two-fifths of them are on Facebook. In Africa, with more than 1 billion people, just 120 million use the social network. That’s an opportunity Facebook can’t ignore, though the region poses challenges unlike those the company has faced in more developed markets.

To spur growth on the continent, Facebook next month is opening an office in an affluent suburb of Johannesburg. The sales office will be headed by Nunu Ntshingila, 51, chairman of WPP’s Ogilvy & Mather agency in South Africa, who will oversee Facebook’s business in the region.

The company will find that winning customers in Nigeria or Kenya is tougher than in Nebraska or Kansas. Africa has few fixed internet connections, so Facebook’s original website isn’t well known. And while mobile internet is booming, data is expensive and smartphones are rare, with most people using cheaper—and less capable—devices called feature phones that can’t run Facebook’s full mobile application.

“This is one of the places where our next billion users are coming from,” said Nicola Mendelsohn, Facebook’s VP-Europe, the Middle East and Africa. “It would be a massive missed opportunity. Africa matters.”

To win over consumers concerned about the cost of data or who live in areas with lousy signals, Facebook is partnering with mobile-phone companies to offer what it calls Internet.org, which gives people free airtime when they access Facebook and a few dozen other selected websites. And it will soon introduce Facebook Lite, a low-bandwidth app that uses just a fraction of the data of the standard application.

“There’s no point sending a video to someone with a 2G connection,” Ms. Mendelsohn said in an interview. “You really want to make sure that you’re delivering the right messages to right devices in the right way.”

For the world’s largest social network, Africa holds vast potential. Facebook has been blocked by China’s censors since 2009, and in Russia it trails local sites such as VKontakte and Odnoklassniki. As sales growth slows, Facebook is working to broaden the reach of its advertisements, which generate more than 90% of its revenue.

A further challenge in Africa is the cost of smartphones, which are rarely subsidized with long contracts as they are in Europe and the U.S. MTN Group and Vodacom Group, with a total of more than 225 million subscribers on the continent, are trying to change that by selling house-brand smartphones for less than $50.

Chris Gilmour, an analyst at Absa Asset Management in Johannesburg, said Facebook will need to be patient if it hopes to succeed in Africa. While the potential is huge, the region is notoriously difficult for outsiders to crack.

“Facebook has the capacity and skills and they will succeed, it’ll just take longer,” Mr. Gilmour said. “Africa is a fantastic prospect but it is a long-term prospect.”

One way to keep data charges low is with what Facebook calls “missed call ads.” Advertisers place links in Facebook newsfeeds. When those are clicked, the advertiser rings the user with a promotion—and foots the bill for the call.

“We were conscious of airtime, which is the problem of most of the population in Africa,” said Gil Sperling, co- founder of Popimedia, a Facebook partner in Johannesburg that uses the technology. “You need a product that’s actually useful to them on a feature phone.”

Ms. Ntshingila will take over the new Johannesburg’s office in September. She joined Ogilvy & Mather in 1999 and was the agency’s South Africa CEO for seven years before becoming chairman in 2012. Her mission is to persuade businesses and advertising agencies to promote themselves through Facebook.

“Increasingly marketers are focused on what is the next frontier,” said Carolyn Everson, Facebook’s VP-global marketing. “There’s going to be an incredible opportunity to develop a consumer base in Africa.”

—Bloomberg News

12462: Tech Installing Diversity…?

From ChicagoInno…

The Huge Diversity Disparity in Tech

While many of the major players are admitting to the issue, more need to make efforts around it.

By Rebecca Strong — Staff Writer

It started with Google: After the company decided to release its employee diversity statistics last May, some nudging from activist groups helped led a slew of other tech giants to follow. Before long, Apple, Facebook, Twitter and others were all giving a look at their diversity—or rather, lack of diversity.

But there’s a big difference between admitting the problem exists and fixing it.

With one glance at GigaOm’s chart of company diversity data (above), you can see that it’s going to take some serious effort to resolve the disparity, particularly in terms of the percentage of black employees. The chart compares the ethnicity demographics of the U.S. population to those at top tech companies. (Hispanic is not a separate category for U.S. labor statistics.)

Apple appears to be among the closest to representing the U.S. black population in its employee base. But as GigaOm pointed out, that’s at least partly because it includes retail store staff. Apple and eBay tie for the highest percentage of black employees on staff, at 7 percent.

Locally, Groupon’s statistics reflected this national trend, with its domestic workforce at 71% white, 15% Asian, 5% Hispanic and 4% African-American. Following the release of this data, the company said that “Like many of our tech industry peers, we recognize that there is more we can do. As a company that is just six years old, our inclusion and diversity programs are evolving alongside our business.”

A faulty pipeline

Clearly, a major source of the problem for tech companies attempting to achieve a more diverse staff is that there are a limited number of black and Hispanic graduates emerging from computer science programs. According to GigaOm’s reporting, 6.5 percent of recent computer-science bachelor grads with this degree were Hispanic and 4.5 percent were black. Meanwhile, 61 percent were white and 19 percent were Asian.

In Chicago, there are a number of organizations working to address this pipeline issue.

For example, Teamwork Englewood increases digital access and use by families and businesses in the community by providing technology classes, computer literacy classes, and Englewood Portal trainings. Englewood Codes, an initiative under the Teamwork Englewood umbrella, is a 10-week summer intensive where kids and young adults learn how to design, build and maintain their own websites.

Blue 1647 is a Pilsen-based tech and innovation center that’s focused on education, offering a variety of classes and workshops to neighborhood residents. Last August, its CEO announced that they’ll be launching a new Blue 1647 shared-space in Englewood in 2015.

A third, I.C. Stars, provides tech-based workforce development to low-income individuals, emphasizing the fact that “the fundamentals necessary to succeed in tech are the same as those necessary for community leadership.” So, not only is I.C. Stars preparing people for a career in tech, they’re also training future community influencers.

Tech industry efforts

Some companies have also been making efforts, but more need to follow suit.

At CES this month, Intel CEO Brian Krzanich announced that the firm is investing $300 million to improve its diversity. He also set a goal to have the country’s demographics fully represented in the Intel workforce and management by 2020, and announced that managers’ pay will be tied to achieving the diversity goal.

Krzanich challenged the entire industry to make similar efforts.

“This isn’t just good business,” he said. “It’s the right thing to do. When we all come together and commit, we can make the impossible possible.”